Unexpected Chance
by Rain-Tech
Summary: Jean's never been the best at schoolwork, and Marco's never really been the best at having friends other than Armin and Eren. The two both have something they want from the other, but how will they handle going from tutor to friends to maybe something more? JeanMarco, really obvious side Eremin. Rating may change in the future.
1. Chapter 1

Many people say that first impressions last forever; that they're the most important thing you should think about the first time you've met someone.

Their first thoughts about you and who who are, those are said to be the things they remember forever. They think about it when someone asks "Do you know this person?" or "How did you meet?"

And again, in the end, the beginning is what people remember; what people think of you, and what their opinions are.

God, I hoped this didn't become his opinion of me. This flushed, tired looking young man in baggy clothes, no doubt looking like a bum.

"Hey, I need your help. Please," I pleaded, practically getting on my knees before the guy, "I'll pay you. I'll do anything."

Asking for help with something so simple as school work was a huge blow to my pride. Though I did have a small fragment of my broken ego remaining simply because it took me so long to reach this place, and allow my pride to take such a low blow.

He looked at me in surprise, slightly down at me because _Damn this guy was tall_. "You… You want my help?" he asked in a soft voice, and it was a wonderful sound, one I wouldn't mind hearing more of.

_Oh knock it off, Kirchstein! You've only just talked to the guy for the first time! _ Sure, I'd seen him around, and gladly admired the back of his head from the back of class.

Marco was his name, and I'd been wanting to talk to him for a while. My only problem was that I'd never knew what to say to him.

And now, I finally had some reason, and the evidence hung limply in my hand, several ominous F's littering my report card.

He cleared his throat, nervously rubbing the back of his neck. "Yeah, alright," he said after a few moments of hesitation.

I could feel my eyes widen slightly, and I grinned at him, nearly jumping forward and hugging him. I held back that urge though, simply nodding.

"Thank you! Fuck, thanks so much!" I exclaimed, grinning at him like an idiot, "So then, when are you available? I mean, when can we get together?" I asked, realizing it almost seemed like I was asking him on a date or something.

Yeah, right. Marco was as straight as a board, as far as I knew. I'd seen him at the coffee shop I went to daily with some small blonde girl, and they were pretty couple-y looking off in the corner. Or, at least, they had been studying together, and there had been enough hand-brushing and lean-ins to hint at something.

Unknowingly I sort of started to daze off, lost in the thought of if studying with Marco would be the same.

_Marco leaned across me, pointing out something on the paper he wasn't even paying attention to. My gaze was focused more on how close the brunette's face was, his lips inches away from my own. "Jean," he whispered, and I snapped then, pressing my lips forward against his. He let out a small squeak of surprise, but didn't pull away. _

_God, the feeling of his lips on mine were like perfection, the way they pressed and moved against my own. I was intoxicated by his kiss, and longed for more. I felt him swipe his tongue across my lower lip, and I immediately parted my lips, gasping in surprise at his sudden confidence as he ran his tongue along mine. I was far from complaining though. "Jean…?"_

"Uhh... Jean?" I heard Marco's voice suddenly, a hand waving in front of my face. Flushing slightly, I snapped my gaze back to Marco's freckled cheeks. "Huh? Sorry, what was that?" I asked, running a hand through the hair at the top of my head.

"I said I'm free every night from 6-8... weekends I'm open all day," he repeated, giving me a strange look. I nodded, taking in the information.

"Can we start tonight then? My grades are crap and I could really use the help," I sighed, waving the paper in my hand as if to showcase my failures.

He hesitated for a moment, then nodded, checking his watch. "Sure, but instead of paying me, how about you just get some pizza or buy me dinner?" The brunette suggested, and I immediately nodded, laughing softly. It was about a half hour before 6, so I had plenty of time to go get pizza. "Meet you back here in twenty minutes?"

He nodded, and I quickly ran off to go get the pizza, not wanting to miss a single second of time he would rather spend studying with Marco.

After getting the pizza and meeting back up with Marco once more, we began to walk to his dorm, chatting idly. (I had just gotten cheese pizza; I didn't know what Marco liked)

Just through mindless chatter, I learned that Marco was in the same year I was, and that he lived in the same building I did, though his room was on the other side of the building.

It didn't take long to reach his room, and he unlocked the door, slipping inside. He glanced around the space, then shrugged. "Huh, Armin isn't here," he seemed to think aloud, gesturing to the bottom bunk of the bed in the corner, before he continued. "Go ahead and take a seat. I'll get my books and notes," he said in that wonderfully calm, gentle voice of his.

I set the pizza on the desk, perching on the edge of the mattress and watching Marco as he went over to a shelf in the corner, grabbing a few textbooks and tucking two notebooks under his arm.

The pizza was eaten rather quickly while we worked, Marco on his own assignments, with my occasional questions or asks for an opinion or some advice.

It was quiet except for our brief conversations and the scratching of our pencils against paper. It was surprisingly nice; for once I found I didn't mind the silence. It was a comfortable quiet, and Marco was surprisingly cool for someone who usually sat in the front of class, paying attention to the lectures like they were the most important thing in the world.

After I finished my Calculus assignment (with a lot of help) and wrote an essay that was due tomorrow, I sighed, leaning back and stretching my arms out. I took a long moment to admire the strong curve of Marco's jaw, and the way it had clenched in concentration, his eyebrows furrowing together slightly as he worked on a rather hard problem, judging by the look of pure determination on his countenance.

He lightly swiped his tongue across his lower lip, before he nibbled on the skin in thought. My face heated up slightly and I looked away, realizing I had been staring at him.

_Oh, dammit Kirchstein. Knock it off, he's straight, not to mention you barely know the guy._ And while it was true that I really had only started talking to Marco that day, I kind of felt like we had met before; almost as if we had been old friends.

Marco then looked up at me, raising an eyebrow questioningly. "Jean? Do you need help with something?" he asked, blinking those large doe eyes at me.

God, this guy was smart and cute? Couldn't he have just picked one? _Definitely unfair_. Shaking my head, I could feel my face flush just a bit darker. "Oh, no no. I'm good. Sorry, I just spaced out for a few moments there," I muttered, looking away to hide my embarrassment at having been caught.

In my peripheral vision I saw him nod, looking back down at his textbook. "You know, this is actually really nice," Marco muttered softly, "I mean… I expected you to be a total ass, or playing loud music, or something like that," he admitted.

I'll admit at first I was a little offended, though I pushed down my ache for a fight and shrugged a bit. "Well, I don't mind the quiet too much. This is a very… I don't know, nice; sort of comfortable. I'm enjoying this though."

Marco seemed surprised when I said that, nodding his head a bit. He looked impressed, and that definitely boosted my pride from its shattered state. "Huh… I wouldn't mind doing things like this more often," he said, shrugging a bit," Maybe even spend time with you other than homework."

I perked up slightly, nodding. "Yeah, definitely!" I smiled, closing my calculus book. Marco smiled back at me, nodding his head. "Okay, good. Then do you want to join Armin, Eren, and I this Friday? We're going to the movies and… you know, the more the merrier," he asked me. _Now it sounds like he's asking me on a date_.

I felt my face flush again at the thought, mentally kicking myself. He was just asking me to a movie. Friends do that all the time! I nodded, pulling out a slip of paper and quickly jotting my cell phone number down on it. I rested it on the book he was working out of, smiling at him and nodding.

"Yeah, that'd be nice," I began to gather my things together, "I should probably get going now, it's getting pretty late." Marco glanced at his watch, eyes widening in surprise. "Wow, Yeah. Armin must be staying with Eren tonight, since he's not already back," Marco seemed to think aloud, shrugging.

"Well… I'll see you tomorrow in class then?" The dark-haired young man asked, and I nodded, getting up from Marco's bed and tucking my things under my arm. "See you tomorrow," I lifted my hand in a small wave, then left for my own dorm room.

The next day was rather simple, I was woken up by my roommate with a loud screeching noise and a short young man man with closely shaved hair landing on me, the breath knocked out of me as he flopped onto my stomach.

"Fuck! Connie, what the hell?" I choked out, pushing the small man of of me and sitting up. He hit the floor with a satisfying thump, and I heard him groan, rubbing at his lower back. "Shit, rude," he muttered, pouting up at me.

I rolled my eyes, getting up out of bed and going over to my dresser. I pulled on some black jeans and a plain dark grey t-shirt.

I slipped my finished assignments into my backpack and hitched it over my shoulder, heading out of the room and to my first class of the day.

I turned in my homework for that class, the professor giving me a surprised, yet pleased smile. After receiving a promise that my grades would be adjusted, I nodded and headed out of the classroom.

I made my way across campus to my next class, running straight into a brunette that seemed to come out of nowhere. There was a slight grunt of pain that slipped from my lips as I felt my tailbone hit the concrete.

My things hit the ground after I did, papers that were previously (although messily) organized spilling over the concrete.

"Hey! Watch where you're going, jerk!" I yelled instinctively, glaring at the guy who had run into me. "Shut up! You should have watched where you were going, horse face!"

I felt my blood freeze, then just as fast come to a boil. I nearly saw red, letting out a low, menacing growl. "What the hell did you just call me?" I practically snarled at the brunette.

His eyes glinted slightly, and he jumped to his feet as well, looking excited by the prospect of a fight. "You heard me!" he yelled, grabbing on to the front of my shirt. "You need to watch where you're going, Asshat," he said.

Oh, this guy was definitely going to get his ass kicked. "Fuck you!" I screeched, swinging an arm around to hit him in the stomach. Before I knew it I was back on the ground, and blood dripped down my chin from my newly split lip.

Someone was yelling at the brunette, I vaguely realized, before a blonde young woman entered my field of vision. _Hey, that's the girl Marco was studying with. _ I realized, then blanched when the blonde started to talk.

"Hey, are you okay?" he, it was definitely a he, asked, looking over me with an almost motherly worry evident in his face and voice.

I blinked in surprise at him, nodding. "Yeah, Yeah, I'm okay," I said immediately, despite my lower lip throbbing in pain. "I uh... I gotta go," I said quickly, practically scrambling to my feet and rushing to gather my things.

He continued to try and get my attention, practically fussing over me. I persisted in reassuring him that I was okay, running off after my things were back in my arms.

I was not looking forward to showing up to class with a split lip and bruised ego.


	2. Chapter 2

The week passed excruciatingly slow, each class seeming to take an eternity to finish. Friday couldn't come fast enough! Somehow, I managed to drag myself through my last class of the day, then back to my dorm.

My mood only lifted once I was in my room, and I quickly changed into something more suitable for public. After running a comb through my hair, I went and grabbed my phone from where it rested on my pillow, shoving it in my pocket and heading out of the room.

We were all going to get dinner before we headed to the movie, so I expected for it to be a rather good night. Little did I know, this was only the beginning of something both wonderful, and terrible.

* * *

><p>Marco greeted me with a happy smile, and I felt something in my stomach stir; butterflies I had long ago believed to be dead. He held the door open for me while I slipped past him, surprised to see my blond savior from the other day. "Oh, Hey! You're that guy!" He exclaimed as soon as he saw me, jumping up and running over to look over my face.<p>

"Uh… yeah, sorry for suddenly running off like that-" The blond shook his head, and I immediately shut my mouth. "No no! I'm sorry about Eren, he has quite the temper and sometimes its hard to keep him from starting fights," the other said softly. I raised an eyebrow and glanced over at Marco, who looked just as confused as I felt.

"Armin, what in the world are you talking about?" Marco asked, glancing back at me, "You got in a fight?" I shrugged, rubbing the back of my neck sheepishly. "Yeah… 's how I got the split lip," I muttered, lowering my gaze so I didn't have to see Marco's worried face as well.

The blond, Armin, nodded a bit. "He and Eren bumped into each other earlier this week. Eren started a fight and punched Jean in the mouth. I told him off for it, of course, and he's being denied any affection for two weeks," Armin puffed his chest out proudly, and Marco laughed slightly, shaking his head. "I'll never understand how the relationship between you two works."

"Marco, you don't understand any gay relationship, you silly little straight boy," Armin teased playfully, reaching up (pretty far up) to give the dark hair a friendly ruffle. The freckled boy gave a small smile, his cheeks tinting a light pink. "True, true," he said softly, his gaze flickering over in my direction.

I felt an ache in my chest, though my stomach did a somersault when I noticed Marco's eyes briefly look over at me. I cursed mentally, trying to ignore the flush heating my own face. I personally had already gone through the whole "No Homo, Am I Homo?, and Holy Shit I am so Homo" phase, so I was well aware and pretty comfortable with the gay thoughts I was having toward my new friend.

But hell, it still sucked.

* * *

><p>After a bit more semi-awkward conversation, Armin made a comment that Eren was nearly there, and we all got up from where we had plopped down to wait, Marco giving me an almost worried look as he headed out to greet him at the front doors of the dorm building.<p>

It was rather anti-climatic, in my opinion. Eren looked up, saw us and simply waved, heading over to Armin to wrap an arm around his waist almost protectively. It was surprisingly normal, though he spared me any looks that were more than necessary, instead focusing his gaze on Marco or Armin.

That was fine with me, the less he looked at me, the less I had to remember how earlier in the week I had run off with a split, bleeding lip. Marco seemed to occasionally glance over at me, seeming worried I might go off and try to start another fight with Eren.

I ignored the looks I received from the freckled young man, instead burying my hands in the pockets of my hoodie and starting to bounce a bit on the heels of my feet. "So um… should we get going, then?" I asked, looking between the others and pointedly avoiding looking anyone in the eye.

I was the odd one out here, they all already knew each other, while with Marco and Armin, I was still trying to find stable ground, and with Eren… well that problem was obvious, and the throbbing in my lip was a helpful reminder.

They all nodded, and we began to walk off towards the parking lot of the dorm, though I was a bit confused as to why. Turns out, Eren had a van sitting out front, a dark navy color that I nearly ran into.

Armin quickly jumped into the front passenger seat next to Eren, while Marco and I clambered into the back, buckling our seat belts while I awkwardly tried to avoid getting too close to him. He seemed to bounce with excitement on the seat, and I tried to stifle my own grin. He was just so… cute.

Snorting slightly, I looked away and tried to play it cool, like always. "Geez, you're like a little kid," I chuckled, glancing briefly over at Marco who simply shrugged and nodded a little bit, smiling back at me. "Yeah, so? I'm excited? Aren't you?" he asked, tilting his head at me and I swear he was giving me puppy dog eyes.

This should be illegal. Straight guys shouldn't be allowed to be this fucking adorable, I thought to myself, inwardly groaning and aww'ing at the same time. I shrugged a bit, giving him a small, half-smile. "Yeah I guess. Just not as excited as you, apparently. Man, you're like a puppy," I muttered the last part, though Armin seemed to hear me, turning around in his seat.

"It's hopeless, Jean. He's already given you the puppy face. You're trapped now. You're going to start crushing on him hardcore after this, and then he'll break your heart, the cruel monster," he teased. I flushed slightly. Was it that obvious that I was gay, and interested in the guy?

I stuttered out a quick. "Wh-What in the world are you talking about?" before Eren cackled in the front seat, nodding his head. "He's broken so many guys' hearts," he said in agreement to Armin's previous statement, and Marco simply pouted, crossing his arms. "I have not! It's not my fault so many guys like to hit on me!" he insisted.

Armin smiled over at me, almost pitiful this time. "It's okay, Jean. We've all fallen for his lies at some time or another. He's just in the closet." Though the blond's words gave me some hope for my unrequited feelings, Marco's next statement dashed them completely.

"Armin! I've already told you, I'm not gay!" he insisted quickly, cheeks flaming by this point. God, he's adorable. I already despised myself for thinking it, for pining after someone I couldn't have. Maybe I should just go find myself a boyfriend to get my mind off of Marco… The only questions was: Who?

* * *

><p>We stopped briefly by the grossest fast food place in all of creation. The drive through line at Mcdonalds was incredibly long, so we went inside instead to eat. Armin and I went to go find a table while Marco and Eren waited for our food after we had all finally managed decide what we wanted to get.<p>

"Do you like him?" Armin asked out of nowhere, pointing over to a table. I froze, before I shrugged a bit. "Eren? He's a jerk, but I guess I can tolerate him. Marco… He's pretty nice… I like him well enough."

Armin gave me a look that said he didn't at all believe my bullshit, and I sighed, sagging my shoulders a bit and nodding. "Yeah. Yeah, I like Marco," I said quietly, my face heating up as I looked down towards the ground. The tiles on the floor suddenly became very interesting.

I scuffed my sneakered foot over the edge of the tile, staring at the cracking linoleum. "I mean… He's pretty cool and tall and wow, those eyes," I practically whispered, "And I mean he's just really… sweet and kind and… Jesus, I sound so gay."

Armin snorted then, nodding a bit. "You do know he's not…?" the blond trailed off, and I nodded. "Yeah… I know...Was it that obvious that I liked him?" I asked, looking up at Armin again.

He practically burst out into laughter at that point, nodding. "Yeah. It's a little obvious you like him, Jean."

"Who does Jean like?" Marco's voice rang out suddenly, and I swear I jumped ten feet in the air. "N-No one! I don't like anyone!" I yelped out quickly, not wanting to face the embarrassment and awkwardness of Marco knowing I liked him just yet.

Marco pouted over at me, but shrugged. "Okay, it just sounded like you guys were talking about something like that. Guess I must have misheard you guys," he said simply, coming over to set the tray he was holding onto the table.

Eren followed after him carrying the drinks, shooting Armin a knowing look. I looked over at Armin as well, face no doubt bright red. "How long was he standing there for?" I asked, trembling slightly from the initial fear that Marco knew.

"Long enough," was all that Armin said, before he took his seat next to Marco and left me to sit on the other side of the table. Next to Eren.

Being next to the brunette was about ten times worse now that I was sitting across from Marco, and he kept looking up at me from under his thick eyelashes, seeming like he was on the lookout for any sign of my crushing, and Eren kept nudging me in the side with his elbow.

I was ready to shove that elbow up somewhere rather unpleasant. Nearly growling at Eren, I glared at him in my peripheral, trying not to make the motion too obvious though hoping the other could feel my irritation. I was sure it was rolling off me in waves.

"Is it Eren?" Marco asked suddenly, and the rest of his choked, Armin and I on our food and Eren nearly spit-taking his drink. The lithe blond broke out in laughter, unable to contain his giggles with his hand. "Oh my God, Marco," he choked out, setting his burger down. I, on the other hand, broke out into a fit of coughs, frantically shaking my head.

"Is what me?" Eren asked, apparently clueless to the situation around him. Armin rested his hand on the brunette's shoulder, still trying to stifle his giggles. "N-Nothing, baby. Marco's just trying to figure out who Jean likes."

It was then that Eren nearly screeched out, making a slight retching sound. "And he thinks it's me?" he asked, looking away, "Why would horse face like me?" he asked, looking almost disgusted. I let out a small warning growl, glaring over at Eren coldly. "Watch it. I'm not afraid of you," I threatened, not expecting Eren's answer.

"Really?" He asked, a smirk tugging at the corners of his lips. "You ran away pretty quickly the other day for someone who isn't afraid of me."

This guy really is asking for it, isn't he? Hardly a moment passed before he was gripping his nose, and Armin was rushing to grab napkins to stop the flow of blood. "Ugh! Dick!" Eren yelled, getting up and glaring down at me.

I was almost surprised, I hardly even realized I had punched him; but everyone else around us had. Marco was suddenly behind me, holding my arms back as he tried to keep me from hitting Eren again. He was surprisingly strong for how gentle and sweet the boy looked.

He led me outside, Armin trying to calm Eren down and stop his bloody nose. "Do you think it's broken?" Marco asked me quietly, only releasing my arms when we had gotten outside. "I don't know. I don't really care right now," I spat, glaring over at Marco.

I wasn't mad at him of course. Frustrated that he had pulled me back from a fight that I was nearly desperate to finish, maybe, but not mad at him. Ugh, I can't be mad at him and his dumb cute face and large eyes.

Marco seemed a bit hurt by that statement, though I wasn't nearly ready enough to apologize for my own harsh words. "I shouldn't have come," he muttered and let out a deep sigh, pushing down all my anger and nearly deflating as I leaned back against the wall of the building, "I just ruined our evening."

Marco, the sweet freckled Jesus, shook his head quickly. "What!? No way! He shouldn't have said that. It was totally uncalled for," he said, crossing his arms over his chest. "But you also were out of line. You shouldn't have punched him like that."

I shrugged a little, shoving my hands into the pockets of my hoodie. "I… didn't even realize I had punched him until after I did it… I have a hard time controlling my anger sometimes. I used to get in trouble for it a lot when I was little," I muttered, keeping my gaze on the cracked concrete to avoid the disapproving gaze from dark eyes.

Marco let out a deep breath, nodding a little bit. "I'm going to go check on Armin and Eren. Stay here… Please," he asked softly, almost looking at me pleadingly.

"Yeah… I'll stay here," I assured, kicking at the pebbles of upturned concrete. He nodded and went back inside, the others coming back out with him several minutes later.

Eren was nursing his nose, several napkins held to his nose to hold back the flow of blood. "Jerk," he muttered as he passed me, heading back to his vehicle. Armin gave me a small, reassuring smile, handing me my forgotten food.

I gave him an appreciative nod, taking my food and giving him a small, sheepish smile.

"Don't worry about him, Jean… He just has a liking for confrontation for some reason," he said gently, resting his hand on my shoulder. I nodded a bit and followed the blond back to Eren's van, climbing back into the back seat.

Eren glared at me in the rearview mirror, though I tried to pay no attention, instead talking quietly with Marco once he had gotten into the van.

The movie theater was pretty close to where we had stopped to eat, so I was only stuck in that metal trap of tension for a few long minutes before Marco opened the door and I was able to rush out into the cool air.

It was like stepping into a high-priced, ridiculously delicious smelling sauna as we entered the movie theater. The air smelled heavily of popcorn, but the building itself felt hotter than it should be. I almost immediately pulled off my sweater, draping it over my shoulder as I followed the others to go get our tickets.

After buying our tickets, we made our way into the line of people waiting to get food, though the thought of being shoved so close between so many people made me a bit uneasy. I tugged on Marco's arm and let him know I was going to stand over to the side.

I gave him the money for what I wanted, giving him a small, apologetic smile as I went over to go off to the side, against the wall where there weren't so many people to crowd me.

I leaned against the wall for a good five to ten minutes before Armin reappeared, Eren and Marco behind him. Marco gave me the candy and slushie I had asked for, and I grinned and thanked him quietly.

Thank God for tall cute sweethearts.


End file.
